Memories and Demons
by EveryStringAttached
Summary: An explosion at a crime scene spells trouble for Ziva and the rest of the team, past events are brought up and things are explained. Chapter SIX up. More to come soon :
1. April Fools

_This hmm, is an idea which started forming about 5 days ago, and I've been putting it off, but I've had to write it down. This takes place somewhere in season 5. Tony and Jeanne, I'm not sure if they happened in this story yet. I kind of know where it's going. Haha._

_I own nothing, except my twisted imagination._

* * *

Tony stifled a yawn as the elevator doors opened. Looking down he checked his watch . It was 7.04. He was never this early. He smiled to himself as he walked into the bullpen to find it almost empty. None of the team was in yet, not even Gibbs or Ziva.

He glanced over to McGee's chair; it was exactly as he'd left it last night. _Good_ he thought_._ He chuckled as he realised his plan might actually work. Quickly opening the small package he had brought in with him, he walked over to Ziva's desk and casually slid open the top drawer of her desk. The one she always kept unlocked. He set up the apparatus quickly and just made it back to his desk in time to hear the elevator doors open again.

Ziva didn't seem to notice Tony as she made her way to the desk, her head bopping along to the audible beat of whatever was playing on her iPod.

"Hi Tony," she shouted as she finally spotted him.

Tony made a waving gesture to indicate to her to turn her music down. She looked at him, confused until he pointed to his ears.

"Oh, sorry," she apologised, removing the headphones. She dumped her bag onto her desk and began rifling through it to find her iPod and switch it off.

"Morning," Tony smiled, settling into his chair.

"Yes," she replied slowly, narrowing her eyes when she realised the time, "There's something wrong with this painting," she remarked, pointing to Tony.

"Picture," he quietly corrected her, as she continued to stare at him.

"You're very early Tony," she said, leaning over his desk.

Tony thought quickly to come up with an excuse. Suddenly an idea popped into his head.

"Krista, my date from last night," he started, stalling for time.

Ziva laughed, "The blonde one? Go on."

"Well she's a little crazy," Tony lied, "When I say a little I mean a lot. Wanted to come up for coffee and I said no."

Ziva's eyebrows rose and she smirked at the last part of the sentence.

"Hey I said she was crazy," Tony said, "She spent the night camped outside my apartment," he explained, feeling pleased with himself, "I woke up to banging on my door at 5am, so I used the fire escape," he finished, hoping that Ziva wouldn't remember it was a whole storey drop to the back staircase.

"You jumped all the way down?" Ziva asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, she was crazy. Crazy," Tony replied. _Damn_ he thought, _she's observant_.

The look on her face told him that she thought he was either mad or lying.

"I'm just hoping she wakes my neighbour," he said, "Mrs H. is one scary old lady, I'm betting she won't be back again," Tony smiled.

Ziva seemed to accept this explanation and retreated back to her own desk as Tony pulled out his cell phone. She slid into her seat and put her bag down by her feet as Tony surreptitiously pressed record on his phone.

He tried not to laugh as Ziva looked on her desk for a pen. They were all in her drawer. He allowed himself a chuckle as she pulled the drawer open, resulting in a bang which sounded quite like a gunshot. Ziva's reflexes took over and she jumped out of her chair and ducked for cover, rolling away from the explosion. Once she was sure there wasn't going to be another explosion, Ziva allowed herself to look up.

"Tony!" she yelled, as she saw him still sitting in his chair, the red record light on his cell phone flashing. She soon realised it had been a prank. Tony saw her get up and he quickly pressed 'save'.

"It's my new movie," he commented, grinning, "Crazy Ninja chick and the exploding desk drawer," he added in a dramatic voice.

"Give me that," Ziva demanded, reaching for his phone. She missed though, he was expecting it and he wheeled back on his chair, holding it just out of reach.

"You've forgotten what day it is Zee-vah."

"What?" she questioned, "Stop trying to distract me," she complained, shaking her head, "Now give me the phone."

Tony simply grinned, "It's the first of April," he told her, expecting her to come to the conclusion herself.

"Yes I turned know, what has that got to do with anything?" she said, getting more confused. She knew there was something she should be remembering, but she couldn't quite get it.

"April Fools," he stated, glad he had distracted her enough to slip the phone into his pocket.

_April Fools, that was it,_ Ziva suddenly remembered. She hadn't missed him slipping the phone into his pocket though.

"Very mature Tony," she remarked, going once again to retrieve the phone.

"Oh no you don't Ninja girl," Tony warned, bringing his arms up in a karate style gesture.

Ziva moved to copy him, then out of the corner of her eye saw a flash of movement. She stopped, taking a step back, and Tony continued to play along, oblivious to who was standing behind him.

It took him about 30 seconds of Ziva staring and his own senses to realise Gibbs was behind him. He braced himself for what he knew was coming.

"Aww it's April Fools boss," he moaned as Gibbs thumped the back of his head.

"Who's the fool DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, as he walked over to his desk and checked his mail.

"Me boss," Tony replied lamely as Ziva smirked.

Tony pointed to his pocket and the smirk was replaced with a death glare.

_I will get him back, _Ziva thought to herself as she walked back to her desk. She opened her filing cabinet slowly, aware that there could be another surprise lurking for her. Finding the file she wanted, she started reading it.

The three of them worked in silence until McGee showed up. He looked around, saw his 3 fellow agents working and assumed he was late.

"Sorry I'm late boss," he apologised, shaking his sleeve up to look at his watch. He was puzzled, it wasn't even 8 yet.

"You're not late McGee," Gibbs said, before taking another sip of coffee and going back to his work.

"Right, yeah," McGee replied, slightly flustered. Ziva smirked and Tony shook his head as he walked past to his desk.

McGee plopped unceremoniously into his chair and as he did so, everyone in the near vicinity popped their heads up as the loud sound of a whoopee cushion filled the air.

"Oh Probie!" Tony remarked, holding his nose, amused at how red McGee had turned.

Ziva laughed quietly, glad she wasn't the only one being humiliated by Tony today. Gibbs seemed to ignore the commotion, he was on his phone.

"Tony!" McGee said, pulling the now deflated orange object from under his seat cushion.

Tony shrugged, pretending to not know anything about it. McGee then looked at Ziva, who glared at him and pointed at Tony.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs announced, and Tony looked up, bracing himself for another ear bashing, "Ziva, McGee, gear up," he finished, throwing his coffee cup into the bin and heading for the elevator.

Tony smiled as Gibbs walked out of sight, "April Fool's Probie!" he grinned, picking up his backpack. Ziva was already at the elevator.

"I'm driving," she shouted over to them.

"Good joke Ziva," Tony remarked as Ziva got into the elevator, "Good try, well done," he added, then started to run as he saw the doors closing.

"Ziva, Ziva," he called, watching as she waved through the closing gap.

"I'm driving," she repeated, with an evil grin.

"Your fault Probie," Tony moaned, slapping McGee's head.

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_Please R and R :)_


	2. Crime Scene

_A/N- Here's chapter 2, sorry about the dealy I've had exams. More to come tonight :)_

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**Crime Scene**

"God Ziva!" Tony remarked as the van came to an abrupt halt, causing him to jerk forward.

She flashed him an evil smile, "We made good time yes?" she asked, getting out of the van.

"You could put it like that," Tony grumbled as he exited the van himself, narrowing his eyes at McGee who had been lucky enough to catch a ride with Gibbs.

"We're swapping on the way back," Tony hissed to McGee as he caught up with him, "You get to go with Ziva,"

"Not my problem Tony," McGee grinned as they made their way up to the house.

"I'll give you two a problem in a minute if you don't start working," Gibbs said, striding past them.

They were met at the cordon by a young police officer. He looked pale and nervous as he eyed up the four agents before him.

"Has the scene been cleared Officer?" Gibbs asked curtly, and the young officer seemed to snap to attention.

"We swept through once because the neighbours didn't see anyone leaving the building, but he could have snuck out the back," he said, oblivious that the NCIS agents were getting impatient. When Tony cleared his throat loudly and made an effort to look at his watch, the officer blushed a slight shade of red and continued.

"When we saw the victims ID, we left the scene as it was, sealed it and waited for you guys."

"Okay, we'll take it from here," Gibbs said, dismissing the officer after taking a sheet of notes from him and turned to his agents.

"Dead Marine, Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen Roberts. Neighbours said they heard raised voices and 2 gunshots, but saw no one going in or out of the house," Gibbs read off the sheet.

"McGee," Gibbs called.

"Yes Boss," he replied.

"Get witness statements from the immediate neighbours, then compared them to this," Gibbs asked, handing McGee the sheet with the police officers notes on.

"On it Boss," McGee replied, quickly reading over the notes before heading off the house next door.

"Tony, wait for Ducky and Palmer, then check the garden and garage, Ziva, you're with me," Gibbs ordered, picking up his bag and stepping under the police tape, holding it up for Ziva to do the same.

Tony opened his mouth to protest the job he'd been given, but Gibbs was able to silence him with one look, Ziva just smirked.

"Oh April Fools right?" Tony said with a smile, "Everyone's joining in this year," he added, moving to step under the tape.

"Wrong DiNozzo," Gibbs called without looking back, "Wait for Ducky and Palmer."

As Ziva entered the house behind Gibbs she could hear Tony grumbling something about being senior field agent. Suddenly feeling childish, she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Just wait Ziva," he called to her, "You'll see," he said as she shut the door behind her.

She turned to find Gibbs standing in the hallway with his arms crossed, "If you two are finished, you take downstairs and I'll take upstairs.

Ziva nodded as Gibbs ascended the stairs and decided she would start with the room closest to her right and work around. She opened the door to find a sparsely decorated room that reminded her of her own apartment. Nothing seemed to be disturbed, but started methodically taking pictures, in case there was something she was missing.

The third room was the living room, and the scene of the crime. Knowing better than to touch the body slumped in the corner before Ducky arrived; she started at the far end of the room by the window. Tony was still by the police tape waiting for Ducky. He looked pissed off.

'_Serves him right' _Ziva chuckled to herself.

As she worked along the room, she noticed a strange ticking noise that was familiar to her. She put it down to being a clock until she quickly noticed that the only clock in the room was digital. Following the noise to under the dead body, she felt she had no choice but to move it. Her eyes widened as she shifted the

dead Marine to find a bomb, it had 10 seconds left on the timer. Knowing that there was no way she could detonate the bomb with time she had left, she sprinted towards the door.

"Gibbs!" she shouted, "Bomb!"

Tony instinctively ducked as he heard a deafening bang come from the house. He lifted his head up slightly from the ground to see grey smoke billowing out from the blown out front window. Then he saw the unmoving figure on the front lawn.

"Ziva!" he called, jumping up and running over to her, seemingly not caring that there could be another explosion. He coughed as he took in a lungful of the smoke.

Ziva was laying face down on the grass, and for a moment Tony thought she wasn't breathing. Bending down close to her, he could hear short shallow breaths, but she was definitely unconscious.

"Tony!" Gibbs shouted, stumbling out of the front door and over to the front of the house.

"Gibbs!" McGee shouted, running from across the road.

"Ziva!" McGee and Gibbs both exclaimed as they got over to where Tony was.

"She's breathing Boss, but she's unconscious," Tony explained, "Are you okay Boss?"

"Yeah, I'm fine I was on the other side of the house, McGee call for an ambulance," Gibbs said, "And backup," he added as he noticed the crowd gathering at the cordon.

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_Please R and R :)_


	3. The Waiting Game

_A/N- Sooo this is the 3rd chapter, sorry it's been a while I'm in the middle of my exams, but I have chapters 4 and 5 already written, so they will be up soon :)_

* * *

**The Waiting Game**

"Sorry we're late Jethro, Jimmy decided to take a short cut," Ducky called as he pushed his way through the crowd. Jimmy was a few steps behind him, finding himself unable to push through the ogling crowd with the same gusto as the M.E.

He ducked under the tape and came to a stop as he saw the team crowded around Ziva.

"What happened here Jethro?" he asked worriedly, kneeling down to Ziva and checking for a pulse.

"There was an explosion, Ziva went through the window," Gibbs explained, pointing to the broken glass littering the lawn.

"She's got a pulse but it's weak, she needs to get to the hospital," Ducky said.

"Ambulance is on its way," McGee cut in, "Are you okay Boss?" he asked, as he noticed Gibbs was speaking louder than usual.

Gibbs put his finger up to his ear and wasn't surprised when he felt blood, "Must have burst an eardrum," he said, "I'm fine Duck," he told the doctor as he moved to check on him.

Gibbs turned back to look at the smoke still blowing out of the broken window, then back down to Ziva on the grass.

"That building was supposed to have been checked, how could they have missed a bomb?" Gibbs shouted, suddenly becoming very angry.

"That officer was pretty green Boss," Tony offered, before regretting it.

"That's not an excuse DiNozzo their inexperience got one of our agents is injured, someone get PD on the phone!" Gibbs barked, "That was an order!" he added, when the agents didn't move straight away.

"On it Boss," McGee said, pulling out his phone.

At that moment the screech of sirens filled the air. An ambulance pulled up on the road and surprisingly, the crowd actually parted to let the EMT's through without being asked.

"We'll take it from here," the male EMT said to Ducky, taking up his position beside Ziva.

The EMT tried to rouse Ziva by gently shaking her while his colleague asked what happened.

As Gibbs explained that she had been thrown through the window due to the force of the blast she told her colleague that they would need a spinal collar to stabilise her neck.

When the EMT returned with the collar, she enlisted the help of Tony and McGee to help move Ziva while keeping her neck still. Tony drew in a sharp breath when he saw the blood pouring from a cut on Ziva's forehead, one which didn't go unnoticed by Ducky.

"Don't worry Tony, head wounds always bleed a lot, it's probably just a little cut," he assured him, as Ziva was secured onto the stretcher.

"Boss," Captain Roffey's on the line from PD," McGee said, offering his phone to Gibbs.

Gibbs seemingly ignored him for a moment as he turned to the male EMT,

"Where are you taking her?" he asked.

"Hills Memorial, it's the closest hospital with a sufficient trauma center for head injuries," the EMT explained, before turning his concentration back to Ziva.

"Tony," Gibbs said, "You go with Ziva to the hospital, we need to find out what happened as soon as possible" he said, finally taking the phone from McGee, "I'm gonna stay here and sort out this circus," he explained, before starting to shout down the phone to the police Captain.

"Good luck Probie," Tony whispered to McGee as he turned to follow the paramedics.

After the paramedics had loaded Ziva into the back, Tony let them fix an array of machines to her before he climbed in and found himself a seat. They exchanged a few hushed words that Tony couldn't make out before the male EMT slammed the door closed and got into the front seat.

Tony was half expecting Ziva to be awake by now, asking what all the fuss was about. She wasn't though and the worried look on the EMT's face as she shone a light into Ziva's eyes made him feel uneasy.

"How long has she been unconscious?" the EMT, who's name badge read 'Jodie', asked, as she motioned for her colleague to start the engine.

"About 6, 7 minutes," he answered, "Look she's gonna be okay right?" he asked, mentally kicking himself for asking, this was Ziva after all.

"We're taking her to the best possible place to help her," Jodie replied, as she placed a bandage over the cut on Ziva's forehead, "I'm sorry I can't tell you any more than that at this time," she said apologetically to a dismayed Tony.

The male EMT in the front was making a radio call to the hospital, but Tony couldn't quite work out what he was saying

The revelation suddenly struck him that this was serious, really serious and he wondered for a moment as to whether he should let call Gibbs. He quickly decided that he would call from the hospital, when the doctors could tell them more.

"Hey Ninja-chick," Tony whispered, oblivious to the fact that Jodie was watching him, "This has been a pretty good April Fool's comeback right, but you can stop now, don't tell anyone, but you're kinda scaring me," he admitted, before taking her hand into his own and giving it a gentle squeeze.

* * *

The moment the ambulance pulled up at the hospital, a swarm of people crowded round the gurney as it was wheeled out, and Tony was pushed to the back of them all. He had a hard time keeping up as they wheeled Ziva into a trauma room. He tried to follow after her but was pushed back by a nurse and forced to watch from behind the doors as they worked on Ziva, putting in IV lines and shining torches in her eyes.

His heart lurched, this wasn't Ziva, Ziva didn't get hurt, not like this. Unable to wait any longer, he pushed through the doors, only to be met with a glare from the burse that had pushed him back.

"I'm her," Tony paused for a split second, "Fiancé," he said, only just noticing that Jodie was still in the room. She raised an eyebrow, and he held his breath waiting for her to say something, she didn't however and turned away.

The nurse looked at him for a moment and then said, "Okay then, but you need to leave for a moment, we're taking X-Rays and only the necessary people are allowed in, I'll come and get you when we're done," she finished and crossed her arms, her face softening a little.

"Okay, okay," Tony agreed and exited the room. He sunk down onto the uncomfortable plastic chairs which lined the corridor and waited.

* * *

_Please R & R :)_

_Lea_


	4. More Serious Than He Thought

_A/N- Thanks for everyone who reviewed, especially the ones who've reviewed every chapter :) I thought I'd post this chapter now before I have to go to work, and ch.5 should be up when I get home. Hope you enjoy it and hope that it's not too drawn out, if it is, blame my brain :)_

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**More Serious Than He Thought**

Tony immediately stood up as he heard the door swing open. He came face to face with the nurse from earlier, who properly introduced herself to him this time as 'Lousia' and apologised for the wait.

"You can go in now, we're done for the moment," Louisa said to him, holding the door open for him to enter. He managed a smile and said thanks, before walking over to Ziva's bedside. Tony sighed, she looked so fragile, so…_vulnerable. _He noticed that the cut on her forehead had been cleaned a fresh bandage replaced.

The room was still busy with doctors looking over Ziva's X rays and nurses checking the various machines she was hooked up to.

He was tapped on the shoulder by a young looking doctor, who introduced himself as 'Dr. Howard' before extending his hand to Tony.

"Tony," Tony replied, shaking the doctors hand, "How is she?" he asked somewhat apprehensively, he wasn't sure if he really wanted to know.

"Miss David is in a stable condition at the moment and there doesn't seem to be any signs of broken bones or spinal injuries so the collar should be coming off soon. There's the cut on her forehead which required 8 stitches," the doctor paused, allowing Tony to take the details in before continuing,

"There's quite substantial major bruising to her abdomen and well as some minor burns to her back and arms," the doctor paused again, and Tony noticed the solemn expression on his face.

"What, what is it, what are you not telling me?" Tony asked, his voice a little raised.

"We're worried that Miss David has not yet regained consciousness," Dr. Howard explained, "There has been some fluid loss from her ear, as well as unreactive pupils, which are both indicators of bleeding in the brain," the doctor stopped as he saw the colour drain from Tony's face.

"But we're not sure about anything just now which is why we're taking her for an MRI scan to get a clearer picture of what's going on in her head. You can have a couple of minutes with her if you'd like before we take her up," the doctor offered.

Tony merely nodded his head, he was stunned. He was expecting something serious, but not this serious, people who had bleeding in their brains, sometimes they didn't…, he mentally shook off the thoughts that were invading his brain and walked over to Ziva.

He wasn't sure what to say to her but instead held her hand. He looked up as a different nurse removed the collar from her neck, and also went to take off her necklace.

"We need to removed all jewellery before she has the MRI," the nurse explained kindly when she saw Tony's startled expression.

"No, no I'll do it, if that's okay?" he asked her and she nodded with a smile, "She's lucky to have you," she said, before stepping away and for a moment Tony didn't quite understand, then he remembered he was still supposed to be playing her Fiancé.

_It's more like the other way round_ Tony thought as he gently removed the necklace from Ziva's neck and placed it in his pocket.

He found himself staring at Ziva, again not believing how she, fearless, invincible Ziva, had ended up like this. The sound of the brake on the bed being shifted pulled him from his reverie.

"We're going to take her now, we shouldn't be too long," the nurse said, "I'll get someone to show you a more comfortable place to wait," she added.

"Thanks but I've got to make a few calls anyway, I'll be okay here," he replied, deciding that now was the right time to call Gibbs. He gave Ziva's hand a final squeeze before she was wheeled away.

* * *

Gibbs and McGee were already back at NCIS by the time Gibb's phone rang. The director had arranged for another team to work the murder alongside Gibb's team, since they were already down two agents and Gibbs, understandably wanted to focus on the bomb that had injured Ziva.

McGee looked up expectantly at the ringing, and Gibbs flipped open the phone without needing to see who was calling.

"How is she Tony?" he asked

"_It's not too good Boss, she's still unconscious," _Tony replied, inciting a worried look from Gibbs. McGee stood up and walked over to his Boss's desk, eager for news of Ziva's condition.

"How is she otherwise, apart from that?" Gibbs questioned, trying not to let the worry show in his voice.

"_No broken bones, just cuts and bruises."_

"Well that's good then," Gibbs offered, he could tell that Tony was worried too.

_"Boss, they think she has bleeding on her brain, she's having a scan, an MRI scan on her brain,"_

"Tony, don't worry it's probably just a precaution," Gibbs said.

_"But when you…" _Tony started, thinking back to Gibbs and the explosion on the boat.

"I know Tony," Gibbs sighed, the unwelcome memories suddenly coming back to him, "I'm coming to the hospital. I just have to speak to Abby first."

_"Okay,"_ Tony said, before putting the phone down and returned to the plastic seats and continued to wait.

"What's wrong Boss?" McGee asked, still hovering by Gibbs' desk, worried by the one sided conversation he'd heard.

"They think the explosion caused bleeding on Ziva's brain, she's having an MRI scan," Gibbs explained to the young agent while packing up his desk.

McGee looked shocked, but quickly regained his composure, clearing his throat he asked, "Anything I can do Boss?"

"Start running those prints that Abby's getting off of the bomb fragments I need someone to stay here at NCIS. I'm going to the hospital, but I'll keep you informed." Gibbs explained, as he stood up ready to go.

"Yes Boss," McGee agreed, before sitting back down at his desk.

"And McGee," Gibbs started as he made his way to the elevator, "I'm going to talk to Abby before I go, but just make sure she's okay."

"Will do," McGee called out as the elevator doors closed. He pulled up the prints they had managed to get so far from the fragments of the bomb and started a search in AFIS. They would get the person who left the bomb. McGee had no doubts about it. Gibbs wouldn't stop until they were behind bars.

* * *

_Please R and R :)_

_Lea_


	5. A Bleak Prognosis

_A/N- So chapter 5 is here, I'm working on chapter 6 as we speak :) Thanks to everyone who reviewed._

* * *

**A Bleak Prognosis**

As Gibbs rode the elevator down to Abby's lab, he tried to come up with a way of telling her about Ziva's condition without upsetting her too much. Abby took it especially hard when any of the team was injured, but Gibbs knew he had to keep her up to date with what was happening, for the sake of the case as well as on a personal level.

"Abs," he called out, as he entered her lab. He immediately noticed that there was no music playing. He spotted Abby over in the far corner, hunched over a table. As he got closer he could see she was sorting through the splintered fragments of metal and plastic that had been the bomb.

"Abs," he said again, more softly this time, and she whirled around to face him.

"Gibbs, any news?" she said, so fast it sounded like one word.

"She's still unconscious, and she's having an MRI scan at the moment," he said, he could find no other way to put it.

Abby's opened in shock as he told her, her already pale face becoming a few shades lighter. She buried her head in her hands.

"An MRI, that's serious Gibbs, like serious head injury serious," Abby babbled, her brain coming up with many horrible scenarios before it seemed to stop on just one.

"Gibbs," she started in a hushed tone, "You, and the explosion, oh my God, and, and…" she said frantically in a panicked voice, "What if it's the same? What if…"

"Abby," Gibbs cut in firmly as he placed his hands on her shoulder, "Abby, it's not the same, okay," he told her, even though he knew it could be exactly the same, or even worse. Still he wasn't going to cross that bridge yet, he hoped he wouldn't have to.

"I need you, to concentrate on what you're doing here Abs."

"But Gibbs," she protested, fighting back tears.

"I need you here, that is the best thing you can do for Ziva right now okay?" he said, feeling slightly guilty for making her stay in the lab, but he knew they had to get as much of the evidence processed as they could, and he only trusted Abby to do it.

"Okay," she quietly agreed, "But call me, as soon as you know anything. Promise."

"I promise Abs," he reassured her, placing a kiss on the top of her head.

* * *

Gibbs didn't have far to look for Tony as he walked into the front entrance of the hospital. He quietly took the seat next to Tony, who seemed to be sat there in his own little world. Gibbs soon found out that he wasn't though.

"Hey Boss," Tony said, keeping his gaze forward. Gibbs opened his mouth to ask another question, but Tony cut in and answered him before he had the chance. "She's not back yet, it's been 40 minutes."

"She's going to be okay Tony," Gibbs offered, trying to think optimistically.

"You didn't see the look on the doctors face," Tony replied in a flat tone that Gibbs wasn't used to hearing from him.

"Look we don't know anything until the doctors come back with the results," Gibbs said, "We need to wait and see."

"I've been waiting for 40 minutes!" Tony half shouted, too fed up with waiting around to care if he disturbed anyone.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs shouted back, punctuating his agents name with a slap to the head, "Calm down."

A sheepish look crept along Tony faces, "Sorry Boss," he apologised, shaking his head slightly.

"Tony," a deep voice call from further up the hallway. It was Dr. Howard, and he was walking slightly in front of the gurney that Ziva was on. By the looks of it, Ziva was still unconscious.

"And you are?" Dr. Howard asked, indicating to Gibbs.

"Jethro Gibbs, I'm her boss," Gibbs told the doctor, who immediately, flicked through his chart.

"And also her next of kin I see" the doctor read off the chart, and frowned.

"I'm not her fiancé," Tony admitted, before the doctor could ask any questions and he was glad that Gibbs restrained himself from headslapping him, "But I am her partner, I had to know what was going on," he explained.

"Okay then," Dr.Howard said, giving the pair another glance before continuing, "If you'd like to come with me, I need to explain a few things to you," he said, motioning them to follow him.

They walked in silence down the corridor and the further they went into the hospital the stronger the smell became. The sterile smell of clean that a hospital had, had always made Tony uneasy, and now was no different. Dr. Howard opened a door to a small room that was furnished with a few chairs and a table. Tony sat down opposite the doctor while Gibbs chose to stand.

The doctor cleared his throat before he started speaking, and he opened the chart he was holding and pulled out some scans.

"I'm afraid I have both good news and bad news for you. The bad news is that there is some substantial bleeding and swelling in Ziva's brain, especially around the area of the frontal lobe," he pointed to a scan which Tony didn't really understand, to try and illustrate what he was explaining.

"However despite this swelling there has been some slight improvement in her pupil motion over the last hour which is a promising sign of the bleeding slowing. As long as the brain does not continue to swell there is a chance that she will recover from this on her own," the doctor explained.

"And what if she doesn't recover on her own, what are the options then?" Gibbs cut in.

"There's always surgery, but with the positioning of the bleeding and the swelling on the frontal lobe, it would have to be a last resort," the doctor replied apologetically.

"What about," Tony started, "What about when she wakes up, what if there's, I mean what if, she's not," he stopped, unable to get out what he was trying to say.

Luckily Dr. Howard seemed able to decipher Tony's babbling, "I'm afraid that if Ziva wakes up, there is a chance of semi-permanent or permanent brain damage."

Tony and Gibbs both drew in a sharp breath at the doctors bleak prognosis, his use of the word 'if' had not gone unnoticed by either, but neither man was willing to bring it up.

"What happens now?" Gibbs asked, he was now pacing up and down in the small room.

"Well she's stable so she's going to be transferred up to the Neurological Unit, where a specialist team of doctors and nurses will be able to keep an eye on her," the doctor paused, he hated giving this type of news to people. "Do you have any more questions?" he asked.

"What time is visiting?" Gibbs asked, knowing that there would be a few people who would want to come up.

"It's pretty much round the clock up there, as long as you keep it quiet they don't mind visitors," the doctor explained as he got up from the table.

"Thank you," Gibbs said, extending his hand to the doctor to shake. Tony followed, with a quiet 'thanks'.

"Neuro ward is on the 5th floor, she should be settled in by now," Dr. Howard told them, as he exited the room.

"I'm going up to sit…" Tony started.

"No, you're not Tony, you need a break," Gibbs told him firmly, "I'll sit with Ziva, and if you don't want to go home, go back to NCIS, help McGee," he suggested, "You need a break from the hospital."

Tony was about to protest, but Gibbs raised his hand to stop him.

"That's an order DiNozzo," he said, regretting the need to use an official tone to get Tony to listen to him.

Tony sighed, and then nodded his head, "Okay, do you want me to update everyone on Zivas condition or.."

"Can you fill McGee and the Director in for me, I promised I'd call Abby," Gibbs replied.

"Alright, I'll be back later on," Tony said, before turning to leave.

"I'll call with any news," Gibbs promised as he walked around the corner to find the elevator.

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_Please R and R :)  
_


	6. Out of Their Hands

_A/N- Sorry for the delay, the next chapter should be up much sooner, it's just my beta has run off :( So any and all mistakes are mine. Sorry if this is more of a filler chapter, it gets more interesting I promise :)_

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**Out of Their Hands**

Despite not really wanting to leave Ziva, Tony was grateful to be away from the hospital. He made it back to NCIS at a speed that would have made Ziva proud. As he walked into the bullpen he spotted Abby sitting over with McGee, she looked fraught with worry but he seemed to be doing a good enough job of keeping her calm. He decided to speak with the Director first and quietly made his way up the stairs to Jenny's office.

He faltered before going in, he'd rather Gibbs had the job of telling the Director; he had no idea how she'd react.

"Cynthia I need to speak with the Director," he said urgently to the Directors assistant.

"Of course," Cynthia replied, buzzing through to Jenny's office, "Director, Agent DiNozzo is here to see you."

"Send him in Cynthia," he heard the Directors voice crackle through the speaker.

Jenny stood up as Tony made his way through the door. She looked visibly worried as she motioned for him to sit down.

"Tony, how is she?" she asked warily, worried by the frown etched on Tony's face.

"It's not good," he replied, taking a seat opposite Jenny, "There's bleeding and swelling on her brain," He watched her face tighten in a grimace as he continued, "If she wakes up there's a chance of brain damage," Tony explained, cringing as he wished he could find a nicer way he could put it.

"If?" Jenny questioned, "We're talking 'ifs' here?" she sounded distressed, but Tony she could see she was making an effort to keep herself under control.

"The doctors don't really know yet," was all Tony could offer.

"Okay," Jenny said, standing up, "Thank you Agent DiNozzo, you can go," she said in a strained voice. She turned away from him, in an effort to stop him from seeing the emotion she was trying hard to suppress.

"Jenny," he tried using her name, but she still wouldn't look at him.

"I said that's all agent DiNozzo," she repeated, willing him to go away.

"She's on the Neuro ward at Hills Memorial, 5th floor," Tony told her, before leaving the room.

Jenny watched him leave and then ventured forward to push the door closed. She sighed, before shaking her head slightly to try and compose herself.

He strode angrily past Cynthia and down the stairs, annoyed at himself that he hadn't handled that better. He almost made it to his desk when he was nearly knocked over by Abby who enveloped him in a crushing hug.

"Tony!" she shouted, "Gibbs just told me, oh my God, what if she doesn't wake up Tony, what if she's…"

He stepped back and took in her appearance. He could tell she'd been crying, as her cheeks were stained black from where her mascara had run. There was no 'Abby' sparkle in her eye, just plain worry.

"Abby, we don't know much yet, and there were signs of improvement, so we just have to wait," he replied, despite knowing that the answer wouldn't satisfy her.

"Why does bad stuff always happen to us?" she asked sadly as she pulled away from Tony, "You, with the plague," she started, "Kate," she said, and everybody flinched slightly at the mention of her name, "Gibbs and now Ziva, it's not fair."

"I know Abs, but we're a strong team, alright, we'll get through this," Tony told her and she hugged him once again. He patted her back lightly hoping it was of some comfort to her.

Abby pulled away and seemed to accept Tony's answer as she nodded, then perched on the edge of Gibbs' desk as Tony walked over to McGee.

"How are you doing Probie?" Tony asked, as he approached McGee, who didn't look up at him as he spoke.

"No hits from AFIS yet, but they're only partial prints, so we'll be lucky if we get anything," McGee replied, thinking that Tony was asking about the case.

"No, how are you McGee?" Tony asked again, slightly rephrasing the question.

McGee looked up at the repetition of Tony's question, "Oh, I'm fine, I'm okay," he replied, although he didn't look it; a slight frown etched on his forehead.

"Oh Tony, I forgot to tell you I found something," Tony heard Abby's voice again, "On the bomb," she continued, "There were two timers, but I can't quite work out why yet," she finished with a puzzled look on her face.

"Good work Abby," Tony praised, and for a moment he reminded both Abby and McGee of Gibbs, "Can you put it back together?" he asked.

"I don't know…Ziva helped me with that bomb once do you remember?" Abby asked quietly.

Tony and McGee both sighed sadly, "How about McGee helps you Abby," Tony said, knowing that he would be no use putting a bomb back together, "I'll run the fingerprints and you two work on the bomb," he suggested.

"Good idea Tony," McGee said, getting up and taking Abby's arm, "Come on Abs, we've got work to do," he pulled her arm gently in an attempt to get her to move.

"When can we go and see her Tony?" Abby asked, playing with the bottom of her shirt sleeve nervously, it was obvious that she was anxious to see her friend, but there was work to be done first, and as much as Tony disliked it, he had to make sure the case was still being investigated.

"Gibbs is there right now Abs, we'll go later okay?" he said, hoping he was being reasonable.

"Okay, but, Gibbs'll ring, if anything happens before we…" she started.

"He will, I promise," Tony said, as he watched the pair walk towards the elevator, unaware that the Director was watching _them _from the top of the stairs. He walked over to his desk and sank into his chair. He pulled up the data McGee had been running to find there were still no matches on any of the prints. He stared at the screen for a moment then dropped his head into his hands.

"Tony," he heard a voice from behind him, one that he recognised as the Director's.

"Director," he replied, sitting up stiffly as she walked to face him, the worry was still evident on her face, still she seemed to have calmed down.

"Tony, I'm sorry for being short with you earlier," she apologised and Tony opened his mouth to tell her not to worry about it, she raised a hand to stop him, "No, it was not okay, you have enough to deal with without me making it worse," she said, "Is Gibbs at the hospital?"

Tony simply nodded.

"I take it he's left you in charge then?" Jenny asked, to which Tony nodded again.

"I guess, yeah."

"I've asked Agent O'Connor and Agent Walsh to take over your open cases, it'll leave you more time to focus on this one."

"Thanks Director," Tony said, managing a weak smile, and wondered if Jenny had already known that all of their open cases had already been pushed to the back of the line. She probably did.

"Okay, well, if you need me I'll be on my cell phone," Jenny said before turning to leave.

"You going to the hospital?" Tony asked, wishing he could be the one going instead.

Jenny nodded, "I'll see you later."

Tony watched Jenny disappear round the corner and then turned his attention back to the computer screen in front of him. There were still no hits and he thought for a second about going to see how Abby and McGee were doing with bomb fragments but decided against it and instead decided to see what he could find out anything about the dead Marine that could possibly lead them to a suspect.

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_A/N- Reviews are love :)_


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